1. Field of Invention
The present invention concerns a dairy stable and a method for controlling a stable, preferably a dairy stable for milking livestock, having at least one milking system including one or more milking stations, preferably automatic milking stations, and where the individual animal's access to milking is controlled, preferably via a transponder or similar on the animal. The invention furthermore concerns a milking station for use in connection with a method and a dairy stable according to the invention.
2. Description of Related Art
In connection with milking livestock, checking the quality of the milk is commonly known. This quality control may be performed in many different ways. A much used way is manual, visual check, where the milk from each single teat is manually milked out in a small container and inspected manually subsequently. The container may contain a test liquid acting on the milked milk in such a way that it can be decided whether the cell count is above or below an acceptable number. Another method is taking out milk samples that are sent for analysis in a laboratory. This method is sure and good, but it is not fast enough in order to be attractive as the only checking means. Finally, electronic equipment may be fitted in connection with the milking system. This test equipment may be disposed centrally in connection with the pipe system of the milking system or it may be disposed locally at each milking station. The centrally disposed test equipment has obviously the drawback that it does not appear which animal is delivering milk with too inferior quality, as several animals are milked simultaneously. This problem can be solved with the locally disposed test equipment where data for the milk quality can be registered and processed instantly. However, this solution has the drawback that expensive test equipment is to be installed at each single milking station.
From U.S. Patent Application Publication 2006/0191485 A1 a method and a device for measuring the quantity of milk for statistic purposes are known. In this device only a number of the milking places are equipped with measuring equipment. By randomly performing milking of a herd of animals, the quantity of milk can be established and the data can be used to control feeding. Using this device and method with only one entrance line to the milking places, where the animals line up, the animals tend to become stressed as they are prohibited from moving freely around while waiting to be milked. Although it has been described in this document to have two entrance lines, one for animals pre selected for measuring and one for the rest, it still results in a number of animals waiting in a narrow row in front of the entrance to the milking stations, while being impatient to be milked.
It is thus desirable to prevent that milk with inferior quality is mixed with good milk, and therefore it is important that the milk is tested at the individual animal so that milk which does not fulfill the quality requirements can be conducted for collection in a separate system.
It is the purpose of the invention as disclosed below to indicate solutions that provide possibility of good and secure milk control in connection with milking of the individual animal, where drawbacks as described above and manual sampling are avoided. It is furthermore the object of the invention to indicate a milk control system which is particularly suited for partially and fully automatic dairy stables.